Traders indicted for fraud

2 CBOT

April 01, 2009

Two Chicago Board of Trade floor traders have been indicted on fraud charges for allegedly engaging in noncompetitive trades that allowed them to pocket more than $2 million that should have gone to customers, the U.S. attorney's office in Chicago said today.

Edward C. Sarvey, 46, of Lemont, and David G. Sklena, 49, of Skokie, will be arraigned at the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse at a later date, the office said.

Both are accused of engaging in illicit trades with each other. Authorities said the scheme allegedly started with Sarvey privately selling more than 2,200 5-year Treasury note futures contracts to Sklena at a price lower than the going rate.

Sklena then sold more than 400 contracts back in another non-competitive deal. The total loss to public customers was $2.1 million, prosecutors said. Lawyers for the two men could not immediately be reached for comment.